The Pioneers had four former captains participate — Aaron McKenzie, Andrew Thomas, J.P. Testwuide and Rhett Rakhshani — and possible 2011-12 captain Drew Shore was among six current Pios who scrimmaged with the pros in the final 75 minutes.

The camp is run by DU associate head coach Steve Miller, outgoing assistant coach Derek Lalonde, new volunteer coach Matty Thomas and former DU skater Angelo Ricci, now director and U16 head coach of the Colorado Thunderbirds (Tier 1 triple-A youth organization).

This just in from The Hockey News and a University of Denver news release: The Pioneers are ranked No. 1 among NCAA schools with 10 NHL “top prospects” — current or former players who are expected to someday play regularly in the NHL.

DU has 10 of the 78 current or former college players on THN’s Yearbook list that includes the top 10 prospects in each NHL organization. In NCAA circles, Minnesota and Boston College were tied for second on THN’s list, with eight apiece.

Former DU forward Scott McConnell (2000-04) of Colorado Springs has been named head coach and GM of the Chicago Steel of the United States Hockey League. McConnell, 32, joined the Steel in October and was named interim head coach and GM in February.

McConnell didn’t play much at DU (six games) but he has been a terrific coach and executive. He has been an assistant coach for the USHL’s Indiana Ice and Des Moines Buccaneers, and video coach for the Wilkes-Barre Penguins of the AHL and Team USA during the recent World Junior Championship in Buffalo.

If DU’s Jason Zucker hangs on to win the WCHA scoring title, he will be the second freshman to do so. Former Pioneers star Vic Venasky won the award in 1971 as a frosh. Venasky had 14 goals and 39 points in 22 league games in 1970-71. Zucker has 20 goals and 36 points in 26 league games.

Heading into DU’s final regular-season series this weekend against visiting St. Cloud State, Zucker is one point ahead of Minnesota-Duluth junior Jack Connolly, and three ahead of UMD’s Mike Connolly (no relation) and North Dakota senior Matt Frattin. DU sophomore Drew Shore is fifth, with 32 points.

DU’s Paul Stastny (2006) and Rhett Rakhshani (2010) recently won the WCHA scoring title as a sophomore and senior, respectively.

In our Zucker story in today’s paper, I wrote that WCHA media guy Doug Spencer said he was pretty sure that no freshman had ever won it. In defense to Spencer, I know he solicited the help of all the league’s sports-information directors Sunday and Monday and asked some old-time league media guys such as Duluth-based John Gilbert. Nobody could remember Venasky, who hails from the same hometown (Thunder Bay, Ontario) as DU coach George Gwozdecky (we should have asked Gwoz!). No question, the WCHA should attach classes to its award winners, so we wouldn’t forget about guys like Venasky when these kinds of things pop up. Problem is, most people look at overall scoring — nonconference games included — when judging players and handing out most awards. But in this case, we’re only talking about what the player did against league foes.

Here are the WCHA scoring and goaltending champions since the NCAA allowed freshmen to play varsity in 1969:

DU enters this weekend’s series at underachieving Minnesota tied atop the WCHA standings and tied for first with 70 goals in league games. Please see our Tuesday story about the goals, a number I find super impressive given all the firepower this program lost last year.

The Pioneers’ freshmen have accounted for 33 goals — 35 percent of the team’s total of 95. Question is, if you could choose right now between 2009-10 star forwards Rhett Rakhshani, Joe Colborne and Tyler Ruegsegger, and current freshmen forwards Jason Zucker, Beau Bennett and Nick Shore, and you had one of these trios for the rest of this season and all of next, which group would you choose?

Former DU captain Rhett Rakhshani of the New York Islanders is scheduled to make his NHL debut tonight at Nashville.

Rakhshani has been playing for the Islanders’ American Hockey League affiliate, the Bridgeport Sound Tigers. He has amassed 24 points (10 goals) in 27 games. He leads the Tigers in scoring and is the AHL’s highest-scoring rookie.

Rakhshani had 50 points (21 goals) in 41 games for the Pios last season.

DU hopes to have better play in front of goalie Sam Brittain. (Karl Gehring, The Denver Post)

Goaltending, coach George Gwozdecky acknowledged during yesterday’s media day, is the question mark of this year’s University of Denver hockey team. But the 17th-year DU coach also emphasized the need for improvement in his team’s play away from the puck.

“There were times last year where (former goalie) Marc Cheverie really made us look a lot better than we were,” Gwozdecky said. “I think at times last year, not that it was part of our philosophy or our system, I think we got very lax and careless at times, perhaps saving our energy for the fun part of the game — the offensive part of the game — and not really doing as good a job defensively.

I stopped by DU today to check out Day 3 of the hockey program’s inaugural “pro camp,” and what I found was a collection of the area’s best live-in hockey players.

The Pioneers, who have a record amount of alumni playing in the NHL and other professional leagues, opened up the Murray Armstrong Hockey Complex, their new weight room and Joy Burns Arena to any professional hockey player living in the area.

It was an impressive group, led by the Avalanche’s Kyle Quincey and David Koci, former Avs Ben Guite and Steve Reinprecht, and former DU stars J.D. Corbin, Rhett Rakhshani, Gabe Gauthier, Peter Mannino, Marc Cheverie, Joe Colborne and J.P. Testwuide. Some other big-name former Pios _ Paul Stastny and Chris Butler _ took the day off but are expected to participate Thursday. The Avs’ Cody McLeod also went golfing Wednesday.

“Anytime you can come out and play with some pros like Stastny, it’s a great opportunity,” said Colborne, the 6-foot-5 forward who signed with the Boston Bruins in March after his sophomore year at DU. “I’m glad to be playing with guys playing at a level I want to be at and it’s a great way to get prepared for training camp.”

Guite, who played in college at Maine and recently signed with the Columbus Blue Jackets, said: “So many guys live here in the offseason, its crazy we haven’t all gotten together before. This is a lot of fun. Good skate.”

DU associate head coach Steve Miller and assistant coach Derek Lalonde are running the camp. They worked with the pros from 10:15 a.m. to noon, and then left the ice after a resurfacing to allow the guys to scrimmage for an hour with amateurs. The amateurs were DU seniors Kyle Ostrow, Anthony Maiani, Dustin Jackson, Chris Nutini and John Ryder, and sophomores Matt Donovan and Paul Phillips.

“It’s a good experience for all of us here to play at that level, at that tempo,” said Ostrow, the newly named captain. “The games have been really fast. It’s nice for us to get that opportunity to get ready for the season.”

Ostrow and company said the most impressive players were Stastny, Butler and Quincey. But there sure weren’t many goals scored on Mannino and Cheverie.

“It’s fun to back with everyone,” said Cheverie, who signed with the Florida Panthers in April, ending his three-year NCAA career. “Playing with the older guys makes feels like you’re a freshman again . . . It’s beneficial to get back into the swing of things.”

The “older” guys Chevy were talking about included Ryan Dingle, Tom May and Geoff Paukovich, who was freshman in DU’s 2005 NCAA championship season.

Wednesday’s skaters also included Garnet Exelby, who played 51 games for the Toronto Maple Leafs last season, and recent DU graduate Brandon Vossberg.

Hockey fans are welcome to watch the camp, which continues Thursday and ends Friday.

DU’s Steve Miller, who has long been known as George Gwozdecky’s top assistant coach, has been promoted to associate head coach. This might just be window dressing for compensation purposes or to remind other schools with previous head-coaching vacancies what they passed over. Somehow, “Killer” hasn’t landed a head-coaching job in his 16 years at DU, including two NCAA championships, yet he’s watched two of his understudies — Rico Blasi and Seth Appert — land head positions at Miami and RPI, respectively. The new title might help with that. Regardless, the promotion is long overdue. A couple years ago we made Killer our weekly “Q & A” and I wrote that he was the obscure “architect” of DU hockey. I truly believe that. Since, some friends jokingly addressed him as “Architect.” Now, it’s associate head coach. I still prefer Architect, and it will always be Killer.

FROM DU: University of Denver veteran assistant hockey coach Steve Miller has been promoted to associate head coach, two-time National Coach of the Year George Gwozdecky announced today. Miller has served as Gwozdecky’s assistant coach for the last 19 seasons – including all 16 at DU since 1994-95. Miller was also a member of Gwozdecky’s coaching staff at Miami University from 1991-94.

“Steve Miller has been a trusted friend and confidante for 19 years,” Gwozdecky said. “He is recognized as one of the finest recruiters, coaches and teachers in all of college hockey. Steve is highly respected by our former players as well as many of our rivals. He is a major reason that the Pioneer hockey program continues to contend for championships every season and is truly deserving of this opportunity and title.”

Miller has been a force as a recruiter and coach at DU. He has helped the Pioneers capture two NCAA titles, three WCHA regular-season titles and four WCHA playoff championships since 1999. Miller has recruited NHL standouts Paul Stastny (Colorado Avalanche), Matt Carle (Philadelphia Flyers) and Tyler Bozak (Toronto Maple Leafs) to Denver and has been responsible for the signing of 13 consecutive nationally-ranked recruiting classes. Miller has coached and recruited 36 NHL Draft picks, 42 All-WCHA honorees, 11 All-Americans, nine World Junior Championship participants, two Frozen Four Most Outstanding Players (Adam Berkhoel and Peter Mannino) and one Hobey Baker Memorial Award winner (Carle).

“It’s been a pleasure to work side-by-side with one of the top assistant coaches in college hockey,” DU assistant coach Derek Lalonde said of Miller. “I’ve learned a lot from Steve in my four years at DU and he is worthy of this promotion.”

Denver has averaged over 23 wins in Miller’s 16 years at Denver, including nine NCAA appearances and two NCAA titles. The Sun Prairie, Wis., native was honored in 2009 with the prestigious American Hockey Coaches Association’s Terry Flanagan Award, which recognizes an assistant coaches’ career body of work.

I missed a lot in my nine days of vacation and need to catch up.I’ll start by apologizing about the lack of coverage we had with the NHL draft when pertaining to our local college boys. Incoming freshmen Beau Bennett, Jason Zucker and Sam Brittain deserve better from their new local paper, and in the future, I hope to prove to them and their families that we are in the big leagues.

Interesting stories with each of these guys. Bennett, who went 20th overall to Pittsburgh, is the first Californian to be selected in the first round (a second Cali kid went No. 29 in the same day). Zucker, who was selected by Minnesota in the second round, is the first Las Vegas native to be drafted. And with Brittain going in the fourth round to Florida, he follows the man he replaced, Marc Cheverie, as a Panthers draft pick. Chevy, of course, signed with Florida in April.

Bennett, Zucker and Brittain figure to have great college careers in front of them, but let’s not forget, the other two incoming scholarship freshman that weren’t drafted – forward Nick Shore and defenseman David Makowski – have huge expectations too. Shore, 17, will be draft-eligible next summer and could be among the top-20 North American prospects when Central Scouting’s preliminary rankings come out this fall. Makowski, 20, was passed over by NHL clubs the two previous years – which in hindsight could be a blessing. As an unrestricted free agent, the reigning U.S. Hockey League defenseman of the year could be looking at Tyler Bozak-type offers in a year or two (hopefully three). Bozak, also a late-bloomer, had 20-some teams bid for his services before choosing the Maple Leafs last year. While Makowski is in a great position, it’s not so terrific for the Pioneers. Instead of worrying about one team trying to sign him, they could have 30.

Bennett, from Gardena, Calif., will wear No. 9 at DU.I assume he likes the number, but he’s partly doing it to honor former California-bred DU stars Gabe Gauthier (Torrance) and Rhett Rakhshani (Huntington Beach). Gabe donned that number when he amassed all those huge goals at the NCAA Tournaments in 2004 and 2005. And Rakhshani wore No. 9 during his All-American season last year. Gabe and Rhett played four years at DU, but the program will probably be lucky to get two out of Bennett before the Penguins lure him away.

Speaking of Gauthier, I skate on Wednesdays with Greg and Bud Ahbe’s group at South Suburban, and among the skilled current or former paid-to-play skaters is good ‘ole Gabe. At 26, he’s married and has a 1-year-old child. We had a nice visit a couple weeks ago before his Green team upended my White squad in a shootout. He said the L.A. Kings, who signed him as a free agent two years ago, have said they would like him back at the club’s AHL affiliate in Manchester next season, but Gabe is going to explore his opportunities with another team that’s willing to give him a better look at the big club. . . . Some other former Pios skating with us is Max Bull, Kelly Hollingshead, Greg Woods and Don Mercier.

Not surprisingly, the goaltending plan going into the season is to platoon the two 6-foot-3 youngsters for at least the first month or so. Sophomore Adam Murray will likely get the season opener and freshman Sam Brittain will play Game 2.

The new third-string goalie is Josh Rosenholtz,a 5-8, 170-pound senior from Ridgefield, Conn. He previously played club hockey while at school. Rosenholtz takes over for senior Lars Paulgaard, who has chosen to retire. In two years with the program, Paulgaard appeared in just four games, including just one last season (4.26 GAA, .667 save percentage).

As DU planned, defenseman David Makowski, 20, is a legitimate replacement for Patrick Wiercioch, 19.

Indeed, the incoming freshman is older than the departed sophomore. And the new kid could be similarly as good as the All-American.

Makowski, who would have joined DU last fall if Wiercioch had left after his freshman year, has been named defenseman of the year for the United States Hockey League. He joins former DU stars Paul Koch (1991), Brett Skinner (2002) and Matt Carle (2003) as winners of the prestigious award.

Makowski had 18 goals and 41 points in 52 games for the Green Bay Gamblers this season, his second all-star stint with the junior-A club. Makowski had a plus-22 rating and was named defensive player of the week three times.

I think Makowski’s addition, coupled with the return of six full-timers, will make DU stronger on the blue line next season. Just think, the Pios will have senior-to-be Chris Nutini, juniors-to-be John Ryder (redshirt) and John Lee, and sophomores-to-be Matt Donovan, William Wrenn and Paul Phillips, plus reserve Jon Cook. That’s a veteran bunch, and Donovan and Makowski are ideal power-play point men.

Yep, it’s not all doom and gloom with the Pios, who have lost seven guys (three early departures). We’ll have more on that soon with a look at the newcomers in line to replace forwards Rhett Rakhshani, Tyler Ruegsegger, Joe Colborne, Brian Gifford, Matt Glasser and Brandon Vossberg.

Ok, maybe the attention-grabbing headline is the opposite of accurate, but DU has no business finishing fourth in the final USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine poll. C’mon, people, DU didn’t make the Frozen Four, and it wasn’t even close. The Pioneers, remember, lost (choked? imploded?) in the first round to RIT, yet those terrific Tigers came in 10th in final poll. Again, DU doesn’t make the final eight, but finishes fourth, and RIT makes the final four, but finishes 10th. Give RIT some respect and put the Pios were they belong, which is no better than eighth.

But, I guess the easiest way to vote was to put the four No. 1 regional seeds among the top four, and then forget about what actually unfolded in the NCAA Tournament.

Which brings me to this: I was happy to see the NCAA season end Saturday. Had enough of the shocking turn of events. Was shocked DU finished 0-3 after going 27-7-4 without losing consecutive games during that 38-game stretch. Was shocked RIT plowed through UNH 6-2. Was shocked Yale beat UND 3-2. Was shocked BC beat Yale 9-7. Was shocked BC pounded Miami. Was (a little) shocked UW crushed RIT. Was shocked BC pounded UW. And I was shocked I didn’t go to the Frozen Four on the company’s dime, either to cover DU or see Rhett Rakhshani or Marc Cheverie win the Hobey Baker Award.

If you’re a DU fan, it had to be a somewhat stinging announcement Saturday, the day of the NCAA Frozen Four championship game at Detroit’s Ford Field. As a reminder of how good the Pioneers were before their late-season collapse, DU led all schools with three first-team All-Americans.

Olver and the three Pioneers have moved on and signed NHL contracts, situations that Smith and Geoffrion undoubtedly will face after tonight’s Wisconsin-Boston College title game. Olver, a junior, signed with the Avalanche, Rakhshani with the New York Islanders, Cheverie with the Florida Panthers and Wiercioch with the Ottawa Senators.

The final three finalists for the Hobey Baker Award were announced today, and not surprisingly, two of the late-season frontrunners are no longer in contention for the NCAA player-of-the-year award.

DU junior goalie Marc Cheverie and Pioneers senior wing Rhett Rakhshani did not make the final cut. Neither was impressive after their stock rose to its highest March 18 in St. Paul, Minn., when both were named to the all-WCHA first team after accepting awards for the league’s goaltending champion (Cheverie) and scoring champion (Rakhshani). A day later in St. Paul, DU looked awful in a 4-3 loss to North Dakota. The next day, the Pioneers looked even worse in a 6-3 loss to Wisconsin. And last Friday, DU had its season end with a 2-1 setback to RIT in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

Rakhshani’s line failed to score an even-strength goal in the postseason (albeit one shorthanded) and Cheverie was at-best average and pulled in the first period of the UW game, after allowing three goals on 11 shots. They played their worst hockey down the stretch, and twice in St. Paul — where a good portion of the 24-member Hobey selection committee watched.

Hate to say this, but if DU didn’t make it to the league finals, or even the NCAA Tournament, “Chevy” and “Rakh” would today be Hobey Hat Trick finalists. Instead, the threesome is New Hampshire senior forward Bobby Butler, Wisconsin senior center Blake Geoffrion, and Gustav Nyquist, a sophomore forward from Maine.

Albany, N.Y. — Proudly donning my Red Sox hat and preparing to go see RIT try to hang with UNH at tonight’s East Regional title game. My prediction: UNH 3-0 (with Bobby “Hobey Baker” Butler carrying the mail with two goals). BTW, pretty sure Butler — who scored twice last night in a 6-2 romp over Cornell — has solidified himself for the Hobey, while DU wing Rhett Rakhshani, Pioneers goalie Marc Cheverie and Cornell goalie Ben Scrivens have played their way out of contention. I know how this thing works, having served three previous three-year Hobey terms. Voting from the 24-member selection committee is Monday, and typically, what the finalists do at regionals is huge. I suspect the three final guys will be Butler and Wisconsin teammates Brendan Smith and Blake Geoffrion.

Anyway, I just filed my DU obit that’s running in tomorrow’s paper. I included the below chart. I’m sure I’m missing a couple “highs” and perhaps one or two “lows” but these are things that immediately came to mind when looking at the big picture. Fine, fine season. Unfortunately, the ending was unsightly.

Albany, N.Y. — In hindsight, when everyone is an expert, DU should have split up its top line. The idea was tossed around last week, but coach George Gwozdecky and his staff decided to stick with what once was an awesome offensive threesome. At the time, I was in the middle. I envisioned the line recapturing its magic and leading the Pios to the Frozen Four. But I also saw it continue to struggle and take the majority of the heat for what turned out to be an epic nosedive.

In five postseason games, center Tyler Ruegsegger, left wing Rhett Rakhshani and right wing Joe Colborne produced just three goals, none at even strength. Rakhshani, who led the team with 50 points, was scoreless in Friday’s 2-1 loss to RIT in the East Regional opener, DU’s third consecutive loss. He finished the playoffs with a power-play goal and an assist. Ruegsegger (two assists) never scored in the playoffs, and Colborne had two goals, one on the power play and one shorthanded. They each averaged at least a point in the first 36 games, but well under that in the final five.

“There are things we probably could have done better offensively — I know there are things I could have done better offensively,” Rakhshani said the humbling loss to RIT. “You look back and kind of shake your head on some of the plays you made.”

Hockey is a team game. One line shouldn’t dictate success or failure. But Gwozdecky played Ruegsegger’s line a ton Friday. College teams don’t record official ice times, but that trio took a faceoff or jumped over the boards whenever possible. They were counterproductive. The more they failed to score, the more panic they felt. And the more they played, the less chance other forwards had to step up.

Perhaps things would have been different if Kyle Ostrow played with Rakhshani, with Jesse Martin or Drew Shore in the middle. And maybe put Ruegsegger with Colborne and Brian Gifford. Who knows?

Hockey teams shake up line combinations all the time. Usually, it works. DU didn’t attempt to shake it up with everything on the line. As a result, the Pios are undoubtedly shaking their heads.

Albany, N.Y. — DU has had enough of shoddy defense. Pios have allowed 10 goals in their last two games. All-everything goalie Marc Cheverie had six shutouts by Jan. 29, but none since. Pios have allowed at least three goals in five of their past nine games. Not good.

I asked sophomore defenseman Patrick Wiercioch about his recent lack of offense — he has just one assist in four playoff games — and he basically cut me off and said I was an idiot (not really, but I respect his urgency).

“Our team needs to just worry about defending,” Wiercioch said Thursday after practice at the Times Union Center. “We need to win games 1-0 from here on out. Cheverie has been unbelievable for us all year, but we’ve taken advantage of that too much.

“We have the talent and skill to win the 5-4 games, but in the tournament, everything is a little tighter, a little more physical. We need to play a defensive style, be patient for our chances and hopefully bury those.”

Cheverie wasn’t so great last weekend in St. Paul, Minn., where the junior was pulled for the first time this season after allowing three goals on 11 shots in a 6-3 loss to Wisconsin. The previous night, Cheverie took the 4-3 loss to North Dakota.

“I’ve definitely been hungry all week and itching to get back in the net to win the next game, (beginning) with the first period (today),” Cheverie said Thursday.

Title central. With a combined five conference championships, the East Regional is the beast of the NCAA Tournament.

DU is the Western Collegiate Hockey Association regular-season champion. Second-seeded Cornell is the Eastern College Athletic Conference playoff champion. Third-seeded New Hampshire is Hockey East’s regular-season champion, and fourth-seeded RIT won the Atlantic Hockey Association regular-season and playoff titles.

No teams from other regionals combined to win as many conference championships.

In addition, the East Regional has the most Hobey Baker Award finalists as national player of the year. Cheverie and DU senior wing Rhett Rakhshani are among the 10 finalists, plus Cornell senior goalie Ben Scrivens and New Hampshire senior forward Bobby Butler.

Footnotes. Cornell won the ECAC tournament last week at the Times Union Center, beating Brown 3-0 in the semifinals and Union by the same score in the championship game. . . . UNH brings a two-game losing streak into the tournament. The Wildcats were upset by Vermont in Hockey East’s first-round, three-game series, and haven’t played since March 13.

Albany, N.Y. — DU is hoping its line combinations today dramatically change in Friday’s NCAA Tournament opener against RIT at the Times Union Center. Because junior center Jesse Martin didn’t skate today, the second line featured freshman center Drew Shore with junior Kyle Ostrow and freshman Chris Knowlton. The third line had seniors Brandon Vossberg, Brian Gifford and Matt Glasser, and sophomores Luke Salazar and Nate Dewhurst and freshman Shawn Ostrow made up the fourth line.

If Martin plays Friday, all of the above will change. Martin will center K. Ostrow and probably Gifford, DU coach George Gwozdecky said, and Salazar and S. Ostrow probably won’t play. If junior defenseman Chris Nutini returns from a eight-game injury absence, the Pios will go with just 11 forwards. That means Dewhurst and Glasser will be the 10th and 11th forwards, with probably Vossberg playing on Shore’s line with Knowlton.

The first line of seniors Tyler Ruegsegger (center) and Rhett Rakhshani and sophomore Joe Colborne will remain the same.

DU’s postseason stats sheet explains its 2-2 playoff record, including the two unenthusiastic wins over WCHA last-place Michigan Tech. Rhett Rakhshani, who leads the team with 50 points, has just two points (one goal) in four playoff games. He has a minus-1 rating. Linemate and fellow senior Tyler Ruegsegger has just one point, an assist, and is even. The final member of that line, sophomore Joe Colborne, has two points (one goal) in the four playoff games, and is minus-1.

Sophomore defenseman and power-play quarterback Patrick Wiercioch has just one point (assist) in the playoffs.

Terry Frei graduated from Wheat Ridge High School in the Denver area and has degrees in history and journalism from the University of Colorado-Boulder. He worked for the Rocky Mountain News while attending CU and joined the Post staff after graduation. He has also worked at the Oregonian in Portland, Ore., and The Sporting News. His seventh book, March 1939: Before the Madness, was issued in February 2014.